Problems Solved
Who is this Apple icloud imposter?
Q
I received a message in my Apple icloud inbox, thanking me for signing up for an Aldi account, Bristol branch. Since I live in Kent this surprised and concerned me, although the credit card wasn’t mine. A later email listed all the items I’d supposedly ordered. I contacted Aldi customer support, but they blanked me. I also contacted Apple, who said it was impossible for two icloud accounts to have the same email address. Clearly it isn’t! By using the ‘forgotten password’ link I logged into the Aldi account and discovered the personal details of the person with the same name and email address as me. I left her a voicemail but she hasn’t responded. I don’t get any other messages intended for my namesake but I’d like the situation resolved. Do you have any suggestions? Mary Donaldson
A
We’ve changed your surname to protect both you and the other Mary.
What Apple said is correct: it’s impossible for two icloud accounts to have the same email address. Your real surname is short, and actually relatively easy to misspell. Thousands of people share this surname, and thousands more share your first name, so there are likely to be hundreds of people in the UK who share your full real name – and thousands with names that are very similar.
So, while we wouldn’t completely discount some broader devious scam, we suspect what’s actually happened here is that the other Mary has simply mistyped her email address when setting up her Aldi account.
Consider it this way. You have told us your real icloud and Gmail email addresses. We could set up any number of accounts using either of these addresses, or just type them into online forms. You’d then receive all the related emails. That doesn’t mean you’ve been hacked or that there are two people with the same email address or Apple account.
The Aldi website in particular allows customers to set up an account without email verification. That’s a bit stupid, certainly, but it’s not itself malicious: it simply means that, in effect, the Aldi account-registration website at www. snipca.com/39263 lets people set up an account using any old email address – real, fake or simply mistyped or misspelled (see screenshots above).
We think the other Mary did the latter, then placed an order in good faith. You received her order email and were understandably concerned, but you were able to recover the password because Mary inadvertently typed in your email address rather than hers. As such, you’re now in control of ‘her’ Aldi account – so it’s actually the other Mary who should be worrying, not you!
You’ve tried contacting her, but as she hasn’t responded, there’s little more you can do – although as you have the other Mary’s postal address perhaps you could send her a copy of this article with a covering letter?